However, Hughes has revealed that Shea's knee injury, which the American picked up in his side's 2-0 win over Philadelphia Union last week, is "not as bad as first feared".

"It's not as bad as we first feared which is great news for us, but we will still be without him for a number of weeks," Hughes told the club's official website.

"He certainly won't be available for the first game of the season against Liverpool, but the medical staff here are excellent and we can expect him to be back sooner than people think given the nature of the injury."